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 Go with the Grain
Grain salads brind a wholesome profile to your menu—and help keep your food cost lean.
As grains tend to be mild flavored yet satisfying, they provide a wonderful base to a salad, adding texture and boosting the nutritional profile. And although spelt and kamut have not entered the mainstream, grains such as quinoa, bulgur wheat and black rice certainly have. Indeed, research shows that folks are seeking out these grains. Earlier this year, Mintel, a leading market research company, identified “nutritious grains” among the top five food trends in its Menu Insights report.
Ancient grains, on trend
The choice of grains is somewhat overwhelming. We’ve pinpointed five grains that stay within the friendly confines of a safe culinary adventure for your customer while offering menu interest, wholesomeness, and most importantly, good flavor.
Photos courtesy of www.indianharvest.com
Black rice: This heirloom rice adds a striking deep-purple color and offers a rich, nutty flavor.
Bulgur wheat: Perfect for Mediterranean or Middle Eastern dishes, this grain offers a tender, slightly chewy texture.
Quinoa: Fluffy and light when cooked and named “the mother grain” by the Incas, quinoa is tiny and bead-shaped. Look for red quinoa, which offers an earthier flavor.
Red rice: Nutty in flavor and firm in texture, varieties abound, including Himalayan and Indonesian.
Wheat berries: These whole, unprocessed wheat kernels offer a mildly earthy profile with a pleasantly chewy texture.
Menu possibilities
We challenged our chefs to come up with recipe ideas for grain salads that stand out with great flavor and unique character. They came back to us with these inspiring ideas:
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| Asian Rice Salad: |
Black rice with baby bok choy, carrot, English cucumber, red pepper, shiitake mushrooms and water chestnuts, tossed with a Thai vinaigrette (brown sugar, fresh ginger, rice-wine vinegar, sesame oil, Thai chiles). |
| Confetti Salad: |
Barley and red rice with carrot, parsley, pear tomato, red onion, roasted yellow peppers and yellow squash, with a fresh herb vinaigrette (Champagne vinegar, flat-leaf parsley, fresh basil, fresh thyme, Dijon mustard, garlic, olive oil, shallot). |
| Ancient Grain Mediterranean Salad: |
Red quinoa with cannellini beans, feta cheese and kalamata olives, tossed with either a sun-dried tomato or lemon-herb vinaigrette (fresh oregano, fresh parsley, lemon juice, olive oil, red-wine vinegar). |
| Moroccan Salad: |
Bulgur wheat with dried apricots, dried cherries, fresh mint, fresh rosemary and toasted almond, tossed with an orange/curry vinaigrette (grapeseed oil, orange-juice concentrate or reduced orange juice, curry powder, Dijon mustard, white balsamic vinegar). |
| Quinoa Tabbouleh: |
Red quinoa with cucumber, fennel, fresh mint, orange pepper, parsley and tomato, tossed with a simple vinaigrette (garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, shallot). |
| Southwestern Wheat Berry Salad: |
Wheat berries with black beans, fresh cilantro, jalapeño, red onion, red pepper, roasted corn and scallions, tossed with a lemon/cumin vinaigrette (canola/olive oil blend, cumin, lemon juice, lemon zest, shallot). |
| Wild Rice Salad: |
Black wild rice with asparagus tips, cherry tomatoes, dried cherries, green onion, toasted cashews, tossed with a grapefruit vinaigrette (grapefruit-juice concentrate, olive oil, shallot, sugar). | |
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Chef Sobczak's Tips:
- Before cooking bulgur wheat or kasha, lightly beat an egg white, then add grains to it. The egg white coats the kernels, helping separate them for a fluffier result.
- For a richer, nuttier flavor, toast quinoa before cooking. Rinse first, then toast until the grains start to crackle.
Mark Sobczak
Senior Corporate Chef
Kraft Culinary Centre |
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Just the facts
61%
of consumers are "trying to
consume less" refined carbs
71%
of consumers are "trying to
consume more" whole grains¹ ¹ According to the 2007 Food & Health Survey, International Foodservice Information Council, May 2007 |
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SECONDARY USES OF GRAINS
Grains offer a myriad of opportunities
for cross utilization on a menu:
- Run a side dish of grains, such as forbidden black rice, on your dinner menu, then with the leftover cooked rice, feature a black-rice salad on the following day’s lunch menu.
- Too much cooked barley or quinoa? Finish a vegetable soup with it for a wholesome, satisfying punch.
- For a spin on the Sicilian arancini, or stuffed rice balls, try making balls out of leftover cooked grains, rolling them in cracker crumbs, and frying or baking them. Serve them as an appetizer or bar food with an appropriate dipping sauce.
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